This
large mbuna type cichlid, named after Vespa crabro the European
hornet, has a fascinating lifestyle. In itís native waters of
Malawi, it serves as a cleaner fish to a large species of catfish,
the Kampango (Bagrus meridionalis). In the wild it has
evolved the distinct yellow/brown markings to advertise itís cleaning
abilities to the Kampango and presumably avoid ending up on the
menu! There is a darker side to this relationship, the Hornet
cichlid is an egg thief, it changes colour to a dark brown and
sneaks past the Kampango to feast on the eggs in the cave nest,
if itís seen, it returns to itís striped colour and resumes cleaning
duties, waiting for itís next chanceÖ

In the Aquarium:

Hornets grow large (I kept a male to 14cms) and belligerent.
Whilst not at the top of the aggression league like the Melanochromis
family, Metriaclima
lombardoi etc., it is unlikely to be the runt of a mbuna tank
and as with most mbuna it should be kept Ďharem styleí with several
females to each male. The fish I kept did well in a 75 US gall
tank with an assortment of medium aggressive mbuna and bred frequently,
producing approx 25 fry per spawn. I believe this fish may benefit
from a slightly more protein based diet than the true algae grazers
due to itís diet of fish lice, insect larvae etc. in the wild.
As the fish mature, the dominant male will grow increasingly dark,
my adult male ended up a very dark slate colour but with some
attractive iridescent blue markings around the gill cover and
flanks.